Unselfishness

You spend all day giving thanks, and you’ll step right outside yourself, because thanks has to be offered to God, see? Don’t be self-centered is what he’s saying. Give thanks, give thanks, give thanks. Express your love to God, express your love to others. Let your life be characterized by saying thanks. And I believe you can go even from God here to those around you. Instead of wanting everything from everybody, instead of wanting to take, why don’t you love in a way that says thanks? Thanks for what you mean. Thanks for what you are.

Thanks for what you allow me to give you. Just be a thankful, unselfish person instead of selfish. God’s love is unselfish and thankful, and the world’s love is thankless and selfish. And finally, the plea, the pattern, the perversion leads to the punishment. It’s clear what it is. We’ll see it quickly, look. For this you know no fornicator, no person who lives in fornication, no unclean person, no covetous person, who is an idolater. Because if you covet something, it’s an idol, and he lists all three of the same things that are in verse 3, persons like that.

Have no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Do you hear the same message we’ve been hearing now for a month? If you live like that, you’re not what? You’re not saved? You’re not in God’s kingdom? You’d better examine yourself. No fornicator, did you get it? None. No unclean person, and no covetous man who’s an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. That’s not our lifestyle. Those people are in the world. There’s no room for doubt about God’s attitude toward immorality. No wonder you shouldn’t do it.

No wonder you shouldn’t even talk about it. We’re the children of God. Do you see this in the text? We’re the children of God in verse 1. We’re the beloved of Christ. We’re the holy ones, the end of verse 3. We’re the citizens of the kingdom, and we must act consistent with our identity. He says, look at verse 5, this ye know. This isn’t any big mystery, you know this. And by the way, I’m afraid some people don’t know this. Now we want to say to everybody, well so-and-so, I know they’re constantly living in fornication.

I know they’re living with a person all the time. I know they do this all the time. I know they’re homosexuals, but after all, they made a decision. Listen, this you know, that no fornicator is saved. No person who lives like that, there’s gonna be a change. Oh, maybe there’ll be a time when a believer falls into the sin of fornication, but that is not going to be the continuing characteristic of his life without a break. From the time he was converted, there’s going to be a change, because salvation is based on repentance.

So he says, those people, they don’t have any part. You say, well, what about a Christian who’s drawn into a sin in that area? Or a Christian who does do that foolish talking or filthiness? Well, the Lord will forgive. Sure, 1 John 1.9. He keeps on cleansing us. And there will be times when we as Christians do fail, maybe, in those areas. It isn’t necessary, but there may be times when it happens, and God will forgive. But it will not be the flow of your life to live like that. Not at all.

I’ve told you for years now, holiness is a change in your life at salvation, and then a decreasing frequency of sin. Well, verse 6, he says, this is the punishment now. They’re not going to enter the kingdom. And let no man deceive you with vain words. Don’t you let anybody tell you, you can do this and be a Christian. Don’t you let anybody tell you, you can live like this, and God will forgive you. Don’t you let anybody tell you, you’re going to be all right, you’re going to get in the kingdom, it’ll be okay, you made a decision, you did your religious thing.

It’s all right to live like this. Don’t let anybody deceive you with those empty words. They’re empty, they’re meaningless, they’re useless. For because of these very things, what things? Fornication, uncleanness, covetousness, filthiness, foolish talk, and jesting, comes the wrath of God on the sons of disobedience. Do you see? These are the very things for which God damns people to hell. Don’t let anybody deceive you. These are not characteristics of children of God, they are characteristics of children of disobedience. Do you see the contrast? Verse 6 ends with the children of disobedience.

Verse 1 began with the dear children of God. There’s a difference. And the result of it all is a final word. Listen and I’ll close. Verse 7. Be not you therefore. What? Partakers with them. The word partaker means partners. Don’t join the world in its evil. The past, beloved, is past. Thank you for joining us in this exploration of unselfishness. Until next time, remember to keep the faith, stay strong, and continue to shine your light in the world. To hear these daily devotions of your daily bread, please log on to bodicegovernment.com. Goodbye, and may your faith always lead the way.